Settlement patterns
Which settlement is linear?
✅ Describe before explaining
Brookford is nucleated: buildings cluster. Ridge Lane is linear: buildings follow a route. Field End is dispersed: buildings are spread out. These labels describe patterns; they do not explain them by themselves.
📅 Support a possible explanation
Brookford’s crossing and market may attract activity to one point. Ridge Lane’s valley may limit building space. Field End’s farms may benefit from being near separate fields. Use may because the table supports hypotheses, not a complete history.
Sketch each pattern with the same number of building symbols. Add a key, route, and relevant landscape feature.
✏️ Challenge the model
What evidence would help test your explanation? Historic maps could show when the pattern developed; interviews and land-use records could clarify why. Propose one alternative explanation for each settlement.
✅ Check your understanding
Which is an explanation rather than a description?
📅 Revise the explanation with new evidence
New fictional evidence: Ridge Lane houses were originally clustered around a mine, and the roadside houses were built later. Does the present linear pattern prove the valley caused the original settlement? Write a revised explanation.
🔑 Worked answer
No. The current pattern and origin are different questions. The mine could explain the early cluster; later roadside growth and limited valley space could help explain today’s line. Dated maps and building records would test that sequence.